Keep in mind FANation that sometimes the best waiver move is to not make one at all. While all the guys here are certainly decent candidates to be added off waivers, the process is a two-way street. Some players will be dropped in order for other owners to be picked up. And sure, most players that are dropped aren’t worth batting an eye at, but in some instances there are some players that can be stashed that have gotten off to a rough start. If you have a top waiver priority this week then you probably should consider some guys below if they’re available. If you’re at the top of your rankings, put in a few claims, but it may just be wise to wait and see who gets dropped in your league. This is one of the weaker waiver wire groups so far this season. Just some advice, folks. Here are this week’s waiver recommendations.
10-Team Leagues
Mitchell Trubisky (QB – Chicago Bears; FAAB Bid: 15-25%) – Normally it wouldn’t be wise to recommend spending so much on a quarterback, but like last week, some owners may be in need of waiver wire help to get through next week’s bye weeks for Philip Rivers and Matt Ryan . Trubisky might be worth owning in shallower leagues for the rest of the season because he’s turning into a fantasy commodity this year. Over his last three games he has 1,003 passing yards, 11 passing touchdowns, 181 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. This isn’t just a bye week filler anymore. Trubisky is worthy of starting each week especially with a tempting matchup next week against the Jets at home.
Marlon Mack (RB – Indianapolis Colts; FAAB Bid: 50%) – On the off chance Mack is still available on waivers you should sell the farm for him. There’s nobody else in the Colts backfield that can really take touches away from him at this point. Nyheim Hines was a waiver wire darling a few weeks ago, but now he is in need of a miracle to see an increased workload. Mack has 215 rushing yards on 31 carries with a rushing touchdown and a receiving touchdown in his last two games. He’s finally healthy and getting a fat chunk of the work for the Colts. If you’re sitting at 2-4 or 1-5 or God willing 0-6 then you need to use your waiver priority and FAAB budget to acquire Mack. Running back depth is beyond difficult to find on waivers and if Mack is there in your 10-team league you need to go and get him.
Cole Beasley (WR – Dallas Cowboys; FAAB Bid: 12-15%) – Beasley won’t be the only Dallas receiver that cracks the list, but with the recent acquisition of Amari Cooper there might be some concern about the other pass catchers in Dallas in what’s already a thing passing game. Either way Beasley has 16 catches for 157 yards and a pair of touchdowns over his last two games against the likes of the Jacksonville and Washington secondaries. Dallas heads into their bye week with extra time to get Cooper up to speed on the offense. Sure he’ll get his targets, but he’s not the best route runner and he’s prone to dropping passes. Beasley’s got some solid hands and at this point he should be picked up in PPR formats.
Willie Snead IV (WR – Baltimore Ravens; FAAB Bid: 11-14%) – Snead hasn’t scored a touchdown over his past six games, but the targets are certainly there. He has four straight games with at least seven targets with 21 catches over that span so there is some mild PPR appeal. Snead failed to have a big game in what should have been his “revenge” game against the Saints, but he has a couple interesting matchups against Carolina and Pittsburgh leading up to Baltimore’s bye week.
DST to Stream - The Patriots ownership (on ESPN, at least) is a little under 50% and they get to face the Bills next Monday night. Buffalo always plays New England tough at home, but this is a matchup worth targeting no matter who is at quarterback. The Bills offense is horrendous and they may even be without LeSean McCoy . If New England is unavailable take a shot on the Colts. I’m thinking that most people who owned the Colts in Week 7 will drop them for the Patriots. If the Colts become available they might be worth streaming next week against the Raiders.
12-Team Leagues
Jalen Richard and Doug Martin (RB – Oakland Raiders; FAAB Bid: 13-25%) – With Marshawn Lynch likely to miss a month there’s an opportunity in the Oakland backfield for touches. In addition to the Lynch injury, the recent trade of Amari Cooper presents an opportunity for other players to get work. Doug Martin likely earns most of the carries in the backfield. But each time Jalen Richard has appeared in the waiver wire column it’s been noted how he needs a particular game script to be effective. Unless Derek Carr is the next player Oakland parts ways with, Jalen Richard stands to benefit. Oakland looks like they’ll be heading into full tank mode and Richard could be a valuable PPR option. Richard has four games with at least six catches and in each of those four games he has at least 48 receiving yards. Richard will likely find himself in games where Oakland is behind and they need to play catch up. You should be willing to bid possibly up to 25% of your FAAB for Richard. Don’t go too crazy for Martin. He’s not that great of a runner and without Amari Cooper opposing defenses have more reason to stack the box.
Danny Amendola (WR – Miami Dolphins; FAAB Bid: 15-17%) – In a bizarre turn of events, Amendola and Brock Osweiler have found love in a hopeless place. Over the last two games, with Osweiler under center, Amendola has 14 catches for 143 yards and a touchdown over the last two weeks. Amendola might be worth the stash in some leagues, but he has a tough matchup next week against the Houston Texans on the road. The Texans have given up 110 yards or fewer to opposing wideouts in four of six games this year. It’s a tough matchup, but if Osweiler remains as Miami’s quarterback then Amendola could be used in other matchups later on in the schedule.
Kelvin Benjamin (WR – Buffalo Bills; FAAB Bid: 10-12%) – Don’t go too wild over Benjamin, but his production is dependent on Derek Anderson at quarterback. The Bills are obviously waiting for Josh Allen to come back, but for now they’re stuck between a rock and a hard place with Nathan Peterman and Derek Anderson . If Derek Anderson gets another start (Monday night against New England) then Benjamin’s in play as a flex option. In four games with Derek Anderson as his quarterback, KB has collected at least 70 receiving yards. In total he has 23 receptions for 337 yards and a touchdown in four games with Anderson.
C.J. Uzomah (TE – Cincinnati Bengals; FAAB Bid: 12-15%) – The tight end position has been tough to gauge this season. Jared Cook has been great, Gronk has been inconsistent and has just one touchdown this year, Greg Olsen is just returning from injury, etc. The tight end problems are endless. So Uzomah might be worth picking up in shallower leagues. The downside to Uzomah is that over his last five games he has three or more targets in just one game. He does have some touchdown upside, but he’s a matchup play and he needs Dalton at his best. Uzomah has another decent matchup this coming week against the Bucs at home.
DST to Stream – The Seahawks are an interesting play this week. They’re fresh off their bye week and while it is a road game, they’re still flying under the radar. Seattle has performed well defensively lately. In four of their last five games they’ve held opponents to under 20 points and they’ve forced nine turnovers. Their one bad game over that span was to the Rams, but everybody struggles against the defense. You certainly can’t hold that against the new LOB.
Deeper League Options
Raheem Mostert (RB – San Francisco 49ers; FAAB Bid: 15%) – As Mostert stole Alfred Morris ’ work last Monday night, he proved it wasn’t just some fluke on Sunday. Mostert saw his carries drop from 12 to 7, but he did have four catches on Sunday against the Rams. It was a nightmare of a matchup, but he did post ten points in PPR formats. You’ll take that in deeper leagues. Matt Breida has a fair amount of nagging injuries and may not play next week so there is plenty of opportunity for Mostert to see more work.
Kenjon Barner (RB – New England Patriots; FAAB Bid: 8-13%) – The good news for Patriot fans is that Sony Michel ’s injury isn’t serious. The good news for Kenjon Barner is that Michel will miss a couple games and should see an increased workload. With Michel out of the game, Barner managed to have ten carries for 36 rushing yards against a decent run defense. Next week the Patriots will take on the Buffalo Bills and with the Patriots seemingly down to James White and Barner in the backfield its feasible that the latter sees 12-15 carries. Barner does have a career 4.1 yards per carry, but that’s in a very small sample size. He’ll get a chance to prove his worth over the next couple games.
Tre-Quan Smith (WR – New Orleans Saints: 12-14%) – While Smith may not have impressed like he did the week prior where he posted 111 receiving yards and two touchdowns, he did see six targets. Up until Sunday’s game, Smith had seen seven targets total heading into the game so the increased workload is promising. Sean Payton and company clearly want to get him more involved. However, there are plenty of mouths to feed in this offense.
Michael Gallup (WR – Dallas Cowboys; FAAB Bid: 8%) – With the most recent news of the Cowboys acquiring Amari Cooper there’s some skepticism around Gallup’s value. Gallup’s still just a rookie, but he’s coming off his best game of the season of three catches for 81 yards and a touchdown. Cooper may actually open things up for Gallup in the passing game, but it would still require Dak Prescott to throw the ball a reasonable amount and Dak hasn’t looked great this year. He averages less than 30 pass attempts per game and Dallas is committed to a strong running game with Ezekiel Elliott . Wide receiver depth is easy to come by, but not as much in deeper leagues. Take a shot on Gallup as a stash, better days could be ahead.
Jeff Heuerman (TE – Denver Broncos; FAAB Bid: 2%) – Assuming that the secret’s out on how terrible the Chiefs have been against opposing tight ends, you may have to fork over a little coin to get him because most people might try to get him with a $1 bid. Coming into Sunday night, the Chiefs had surrendered at least three catches and at least 74 receiving yards in five straight games. Now they did limit C.J. Uzomah to just two catches for 13 yards, but Uzomah’s day was salvaged with a touchdown. There will be a handful of better options, but Heuerman’s worth consideration based on the matchup alone.
DST to Stream – They aren’t the strongest option and they could put up a goose egg in a rematch against the Browns, but the Steelers are widely available and in a fairly decent matchup at home against Cleveland. They’ve forced only two turnovers over their last three games, but they should be upset about tying the Browns in the season opener. They’re coming off their bye and will be well rested.